: 343GS states: "The installation was specifically built to study and
: contain the Flood."

: If, by 'installation', he means Halo, then his comment implies that it's
: primary function was not to destroy all potential food sources. That would
: only be a last resort failsafe function in light of the Flood actually
: getting off Halo. However, if Cortana is right and destroying Halo has
: killed the Flood, then why was there not a first level failsafe that
: allowed for the self destruction of the installation if the Flood got
: loose upon its surface? Surely a far simpler and cleaner solution than the
: mass wiping out of life across the whole galaxy.

If, by 'installation', he does mean the whole Halo, then I think it paints an interesting picture of how the Forerunner feel about our particular galaxy.

The ability to fire off the Halo(s) and kill off all (or most) life in this galaxy seems to imply that there isn't (or wasn't once) anything worth saving in this galaxy. That seems to imply that the Forerunner might not be from here, but use this particular galaxy as a sort of laboratory. Something gets out, you disinfect the laboratory. You don't, however, live in the laboratory. ;-)

: What if destroying Halo in that manner doesn't actually guarantee killing the
: Flood completely? After all, breaking up Halo would definitely stop it
: from firing. But completely kill the Flood as well...?

: While Cortana's plan to stop Halo from firing is quite laudable and certainly
: understandable in the circumstances, her single minded concerns over doing
: so tend to ignore the potential of the Flood themselves.

: Is there a chance that something came out of the core with Cortana (full
: circle here) that wishes to preserve/release the Flood and get rid of Halo
: at the same time?

: "Its parasitic nature belies the Flood's intelligence."

The possibility certainly exists that she's got some ulterior motive for blowing up the Halo, but keeping it from firing makes any other purposes academic. If it fires, all of humanity, anything she has a "duty" to, everything she knows is annihilated. I don't think there's enough evidence of a connection to anything outside the realm of humanity to imagine that she wouldn't put disabling Halo as her first priority.

[snip]

: 343GS: "The Flood must not escape the installation. They could soon
: evolve."